The advent of set-top box devices has provided users of media services with access to a large number and variety of media content choices. For example, a user of a media service may choose to access and experience a variety of media content and specific services such as broadcast television programs, pay-per-view services, video-on-demand programming, Internet services, and audio programming by way of a set-top box device.
A provider of such a media service (“service provider”) typically obtains media content from one or more content providers and makes the media content accessible to users of the media service, such as by distributing the media content to set-top box devices operated by the users of the media service. Certain content providers have a vested interest in controlling (e.g., restricting) how and where the media content is distributed so as to prevent piracy, protect the value of the media content, and maximize revenue. The service provider, on the other hand, has a vested interest in maximizing competitive advantage and user satisfaction with the media service, such as by providing robust features for use by users of the media service to conveniently access media content.
For example, a service provider may want to provide a remote access service in which the set-top box device streams media content to a mobile computing device (e.g., smartphones, tablet computers, etc.) while a user of the mobile computing device travels. However, certain content providers may be hesitant to allow the service provider to provide such a remote access service because even though the set-top box device may be located in a geographic area where access to the media content is authorized, the mobile computing device that would receive the streamed media content may be located in a different geographic area where access to the media content is not authorized.